Fourth week of March, 1926, 1951, 1976 & 2001
MARCH 26 100 Years ago – 1926
Workmen were installing playground equipment at the public school, a project of the Kiwanis Club. The cost was about $600 ($10,925 in today’s money).
75 years ago – 1951
The Federal Communications Commission marked Martinsville as a prospective site for a television broadcasting station. The commission assigned channels to several cities in Virginia. Hearings would be held at a later date from applicants who wanted to run television stations. Martinsville’s channel would be 35.
50 years ago – 1976
In Patrick County, Brett Suttin was attending Sunday services at Primitive Baptist churches and tape-recording the services to record the tunes of the hymns. In Franklin County, Pete Hartman was doing a similar project. The projects were funded by a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Suttin said that Primitive Baptist churches did not use musical instruments in their services, because musical instruments were not mentioned in the New Testament.
25 years ago - 2001
Vopak, based in the Netherlands, bought Ellis & Everard, the parent company of Prillaman Chemical. That would result in the loss of about 25 jobs at Prillaman. The company planned to keep the plant at 835 Fisher St., but the Martinsville headquarters and most of its job functions, such as accounting, credit, billing, payroll and accounts receivable, would be eliminated once the office’s business systems were computerized, by summer. Those jobs paid between $7 and $20 an hour. Prillaman had about 65 employees total, between the plant and office. It distributed industrial chemicals for the food and drink, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries and specialty coatings, and it recycled hazardous waste for the furniture industry.
MARCH 27 100 Years ago – 1926
Water system engineer J.W. Ambler of Richmond was in Martinsville making a survey of the town’s water supply and proposed new addition. His work would include estimating the cost of the installation of a proposed new addition to the water supply from Beaver Creek.
75 years ago – 1951
Curbs and gutters were being poured on the Lester Airport fill, creating a new street which would link Liberty and North Moss. When the new street was completed it would be routed as 108 north. A portion of Moss Street already had been widened in preparation, to 30 feet from its earlier 18 feet.
50 years ago – 1976
About 120 people in Martinsville and Henry County were enrolled in the Adult Basic Education program at Campbell Court or one of three county satellite centers. The ABE had been operating for 5 years with an annual budget of $15,000. About 60% of the ABE students who took the GED exam passed it and received a high school diploma.
25 years ago - 2001
The Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce awarded Calvary Christian Church on Mulberry Road with a Community Improvement Award. The church had spruced up its looks, including with a new steeple. The Rev. Eldon Morgan was the pastor. Cindy Summit was the vice president of the Chamber.
MARCH 28 100 Years ago – 1926
Dr. M.E. Hundley was confined to his bed at the Lucy Lester hospital, which he ran, suffering an attack of the flu.
75 years ago – 1951
Business, professional and civic leaders met to set up an organization to create a local blood bank program that would meet Red Cross approval. The organization would try to register 5,000 people in the county and city for blood donations to the bank, which would be part of the Roanoke Regional center bank which was made up of 35 communities.
50 years ago – 1976
Mondays were the days people with Drunk in Public charges were in the Martinsville and Henry County General District Courts. Normally, the person would get either a fine or a short jail term. Judge Kenneth M. Covington started a new program, Honor Court, in conjunction with the state-supported Alcoholic Treatment Center in Collinsville. People had the choice of receiving a punishment or quit drinking with the help of Honor Court. About 50 people had enrolled in the Honor Court program since its beginnings in November. An estimated 19 of them had stopped drinking. The first step was to get the prescription drug Antabuse, which makes the user sick if they drink alcohol. The alcoholic also went through counseling.
25 years ago - 2001
Elizabeth Bailey’s photographs were on display at Piedmont Arts in the Lynwood Artists Gallery. Her exhibit was called “Particularities of Place.” Most of the photographs were black and white photographs of natural or architectural subjects.
At Memorial Hospital’s Piedmont Arts Satellite Gallery, quilts made by Memorial Hospital’s Krazy Quilters and Piedmont Arts Association’s Virginia Foothills Quilters Guild were on display.
MARCH 29 100 Years ago – 1926
Claude Wells Post, American Legion, of Fieldale and its Ladies Auxiliary, hosted a banquet. The speaker was Charles Reed of Martinsville, who spoke on the fact that every “buddy” should be a member of the American Legion. Fifth District Ladies Auxiliary Chairman Mrs. Kate Powell gave the ladies some helpful suggestions regarding their work.
75 years ago – 1951
A steering committee was conducting a study of potential needs to establish a home-bound rehabilitation program for patients suffering from tuberculosis and other illnesses. The 15-member committee was made of representatives of key agencies in the city and county. They would ask recuperating patients about their aptitudes, preferences in employment and what they needed to develop vocations.
50 years ago – 1976
The MHC Board of Realtors leased 100 garden spots, 100 feet by 40 feet each, for $10 ($56 in today’s dollars). The sites were in Forest Park, Villa Heights and 4 acres near the Martinsville Drive-In Theatre. Prizes would be given for the best overall garden and for best varieties of individual vegetables.
25 years ago - 2001
Mills Paving opened for business in Critz. It was owned by Terry Mills and Michael Mills, and Larry Martin was the equipment operator. The business also did beginning excavation and land work at building sites.
MARCH 30 100 Years ago – 1926
O.D. Ford Motor Company bought the old Jones property in Ridgeway, a brick building on Main Street, facing on the Greensboro and Winston-Salem Roads. O.D. Ford would raze the old building and put up the most modern and beautiful filling station in the county.
75 years ago – 1951
In Critz, FFA Chapter president Billy Barbour installed the new infra-red heat lamp system of brooding chickens, saying it was the best system he had used.
50 years ago – 1976
Barter Theatre, the state theater of Virginia, presented “The Glass Menagerie” by Tennessee Williams at Martinsville High School, sponsored by First National Bank of Martinsville and Henry County, where tickets were sold at all branches.
Oak Level Ruritan Club had a potato fundraiser. Members planted 1,000 pounds of potatoes on 2 acres of land belonging to Joel Wilson in Oak Level. Once the potatoes were harvested and sold, proceeds would help pay for a club house. Ralph Franklin was the club president.
25 years ago - 2001
CPFilms had upgraded its computer system and donated its old computers to four Henry County Elementary schools. Tony Moran was the information technology manager for CPFilms. For $1, the company gave 206 computers, with a total estimated value of $50,000.
MARCH 31 100 Years ago – 1926
Ethel Brown, 13, who had been found frozen in a field near Rocky Mount three weeks before and had been a patient since then at Lucy Lester Hospital, was improving. It had been thought at first that her feet would have to be amputated, but that ended up being not necessary.
Grand Piano, a Roanoke company, announced that it had leased the Stephens Building on Walnut Street, the former home of the Martinsville Drug Company. Grand Piano would carry all lines of musical instruments, records, sheet music and talking machines, including the Brunswick.
75 years ago – 1951
The body of 17-year-old Pvt. James L. Franklin, who had lived on Barrows Mills Road, was being shipped back to Martinsville for burial. He had been killed in action in the Korean War on Nov. 6. His parents were no longer living, but he had five sisters, Lula Barrow, Mary Oakley, Mrs. Morton Crutchfield, Ester Richardson and Emma Eagle, all of Martinsville, and Mrs. Earl Norrick of Indiana, and one brother, Perry Franklin of South Carolina.
Harry Cline lost three fingers on his left hand while working at Gravely Novelty Plant.
50 years ago – 1976
The Best in Show winners of the art show of Henry County students, sponsored by First United Bank of MHC, were Richard Hairston, Piper Stone and Carl Stanley. Each received $25 ($142 in today’s money).
Lisa Taylor of Bassett and Ida Shoemaker of Collinsville won the title of Virginia’s Miss Beautiful Majorette, Shoemaker in the 15-20 age range, and Taylor in the 13-14 range.
25 years ago - 2001
Presentations made by Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. showed that a typical pension a former Tultex employee would receive would be $144 a month. PBGC took over the pension plan from Tultex in November 2000, about a year after Tultex declared bankruptcy.
— Information from museum records and the Henry Bulletin and the Martinsville Bulletin.